Olive deals with a great loss and her friends try to rally around her in Gotham Academy #8. But still the mysteries deepen as Olive faces another test.
Rain falls on Gotham Academy. The classes, halls and dorms are empty and still. In the cemetery, in the rain, people gather under umbrellas. Kyle and Maps’ family is there. Kyle’s Father tells him to go console Olive as Olive’s Mother has just died. Maps wants to go too but they tell her to let Kyle handle it. Kyle moves to comfort Olive but sees that Tristan is already with her. Later Maps tells him that Olive needs her too.
Kyle is in a haze. At school, Anna flirts with him but he can hardly hear her. He is also unable to focus at tennis practice to the consternation of his coach. While trying to please his coach, Kyle sees Tristan watching him. He follows Tristan who goes to Doctor Langstrom’s lab. Dr. Langstrom is studying Tristan and trying to help him deal with turning into a Man-Bat. Tristan makes the transformation while Kyle is spying on the pair.
Kyle races over to Olive’s room to tell her to stay away from Tristan. Olive is upset that he would tell her who she can and can’t see. Kyle tells her that he saw Tristan turn into Were-bat but Olive just storms out of her room to go to her appointment with her Guidance Counselor.
However, Maps is behind the wall in the secret tunnels and has overheard Tristan’s experience. She cries out in joy with the exciting news. She shows Kyle the tunnel and they decide to get to the Guidance office before Olive does. Behind the wall they overhear Olive telling her counselor that she can trust Tristan with her problems. This spurs Kyle to break into Tristan’s room to look for clues. Tristan catches them however and transforms into a bat in front of their eyes. He then flies out the window and heads for the cemetery.
Kyle and maps follow him. They are swarmed by bats and must break through the cemetery gate. They search for Tristan and find him collapsed on the ground. They help him up and take him to Dr. Langstrom who tells Kyle and Maps to tell Professor MacPherson that Tristan has been attacked. Maps does, and Kyle goes to find Olive.
He finds her at the edge of a little dock. He tells Olive that Tristan was attacked by a wild animal and is with Langstrom.
Olive tells Kyle that Tristan saw her start the North Hall fire. Olive has no memory of it but is concerned that this is the same behavior that her Mother had. She is worrying that she will get worse and eventually be locked up. Kyle comforts her and they kiss. Olive says the kiss was a mistake and sends Kyle away.
Olive senses that something is amiss. She looks off the dock into the water and sees an envelope. She gets it and reads the letter inside which is to Olive from her mother. It tells of a mysterious truth about their family, a secret reason for her death and warns Olive that she shouldn’t trust anyone. The letter finishes with Olive’s mother telling her she loved her till the end and suggests that they will meet again. As Olive reads the letter a creepy figure stands behind her.
Gotham Academy is turning out to be an amazing read. The book begins with the art skillfully setting the quiet and depressing mood. The colors in this book are soft and haunting. I liked that much of the book was from Kyle’s perspective. The way that the authors conveyed Kyle lost in his thoughts while he was being spoken to was subtly done. Also, you can feel the competition between him and Tristan for Olive’s affections. You can really feel Kyle’s frustration and wonder at his motives for telling Olive about Tristan’s metamorphosis. Also, Maps is adorable.
All together this book is presenting another mystery that I can’t wait to see unfold. What is the secret behind Olive’s family? Who is the creature that attacked Tristan? And whats up with all the firestarting. I don’t know but I am looking forward to next month to find out more.
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